The best case you can make for Russia is that the Kinzhal developers actually did commit treason but in a way that was unrelated to the Kinzhal missiles not being effective which is… laughable
The governments of both countries are being "selective" about the truth and imposing censorship by force. Which makes sense at times of war!
Nobody here should take anything released by the involved parties (and their sponsors) as gospel. It's war. War is about deception.
What is the purpose of arresting your missile scientists for treason? What’s your best case interpretation?
The problem is both, and Ukraine is arresting people who film them. It's martial law, both countries are at war and truth suffers (understandably).
> What is the purpose of arresting your missile scientists for treason? What’s your best case interpretation?
I don't know, I would guess:
- They said something about the Khinzal that downplays the importance of the weapon.
- They said something that would help Ukraine better counter them.
- They said something against Putin or the military invasion.
What they very likely didn't say is that the Khinzal is a hypersonic maneuverable weapon, which is the point of TFA you're commenting about.
"This enables the missile to penetrate through all existing and projected air defense systems and deliver a nuclear or conventional warhead over a distance in excess of two thousand kilometers" - [1]
Either he overhyped it, or he was misled.
[1] - https://www.ainonline.com/aviation-news/defense/2018-03-02/p...
They’re getting arrested because they promised Putin an unstoppable weapon and now he looks like a dumbass.
You are jumping to wildly unsupported conclusions.
Any of my guesses is more likely.
It's part of the reason why the initial invasion went so terribly; Putin's analysts told him Kyiv would bend over immediately, and that the public would welcome them as liberators.
Putin smells so much of his own farts that he bought it completely. The analysts were then shocked when Putin said "Okay, invasion today"
"Article 353. Planning, Preparing, Initiating, or Waging War of Aggression
1. Planning, preparing, or initiating a war of aggression - is punishable by deprivation of liberty for a term of seven to fifteen years.
2. Waging a war of aggression - is punishable by deprivation of liberty for a term of ten to twenty years."
When in modern times has an aggressor ever framed the aggression in terms different from a righteous defense?
As things are, if he's still alive by the time regime in Russia changes, that will probably be (one of) the law he will be prosecuted under.